The Quest
by Dreamer of Legends
Summary: A perilous mission. A priceless treasure. Two brothers on a quest to face life-threatening dangers and learn what it truly means to be strong.
1. Trapped Beginnings

"This way, quickly!"

"We cannot let them escape!"

The loud voices faded into the distance, along with the steady beat of heavy footsteps. In the darkness of the room the men had just left, Yami slumped against the wall and paused to catch his breath.

_Ra, this armor is hot._ He thought, brushing his bangs back and wiping the sweat from his brow. He couldn't stay in one place for too long, those goons could be back any moment. He blew out another breath, checked his gear, and then slipped silently down the corridor.

The sounds of pursuit had died down, both before and behind him, and so he sacrificed stealth for a measure of speed, trotting easily down the long, narrow passageways. He was only half paying attention to his surroundings as he ran, for he was going through a mental run down of the map he had taken from the first guard he had encountered. He had not kept the map, because he knew that if it was missing when the man woke up, then the alarm would have been raised only that much sooner.

He had to hide a small smile at that thought, for he knew the man would awaken with one devil of a headache. But hey, that's what you get for working with the bad guys. No mercy from the good guys.

As it was, the alert had gone off much faster than he had anticipated, and he had to constantly watch his step in case he ran into any more guards. Though Yami was determined to escape without shedding any innocent blood, he doubted his enemies would be as merciful.

He brought his attention fully back to the present then, certain he was on the right path. A few more side passageways opened their dark mouths as he passed, but he kept his path straight until the very end. He slowed just before he reached the turn, putting his back to the wall and listening hard. He tried to keep his breathing quiet, somehow sensing that something was listening for him. Carefully, slowly, he peeked around the corner.

Nothing. Too much nothing, it was far too quiet. There was no movement. If he was correct in his assessment of this place, then just beyond this turn there was a wide open cavern that usually served as a meeting hall. From there he could choose any number of exits, most of which would lead to dead ends now that the enemy knew that he was here. But if he could find the right door, then it would be a straight run to freedom.

That was the only obstacle (he hoped,) but still he hesitated. He could almost _feel _eyes upon him, and that sixth-sense was ringing silent alarm bells. He held his breath and kept quiet for just a moment longer, hoping his enemy would grow careless and reveal itself. Because if it didn't, he would just have to forge ahead and risk an ambush.

Then he heard it. A scraping, shuffling sound that set his nerves on edge. He had only seen them once, dark humanoid beings that were like shadow copies of the guards that ran amuck here. But, fortunately, Yami saw these creatures as entirely less than human, and thus he could kill them without feeling guilty about ending a human life. A fiery light leapt into his eyes.

Their dragging gait was a dead giveaway; but his suspicion officially proved correct just a moment later when they turned the corner at the end of the hall he was watching. The first two walked in on two legs, just like humans. They carried no weapons, they would not need any. Their limbs were just as strong as any human, and they had the ability to melt into the darkness around them to become less substantial. They would need to be dealt with quickly, and quietly if that was at all possible. Yami tensed, flexing his fingers in anticipation, his blood beating in his ears.

Before he made his move however, he took note of one last shadow that was crawling along the roof like a spider. It clung to the dark stone with both hands and feet, moving like water. He would take out that one first.

The two shadows at the end of the hall paused, and for a moment he thought they had spotted him. But they turned to each other and relaxed their postures, one waving its arms in small gestures and the other nodding its featureless head. The third continued crawling down the ceiling, getting dangerously close to his position. Apparently they were holding a silent conversation, following the basic instincts of the humans they had been copied from.

Nothing but copies, fakes. Yami's eyes flashed again. He was ready.

A flash of silver caught the attention of the crawler on the ceiling. It turned its sightless face to look at the bright point of gleaming silver that was speeding toward it, realizing too late what it was. Yami's sword caught it right in the center, impaling the shadow beast to the ceiling with a sharp hiss.

The other two creatures snapped their attention up to their slain comrade. _Idiots._ Yami thought, descending swiftly upon them and drawing a pair of daggers from his boots as he went. The shadows managed to turn around just in time to meet their purple-eyed death face to face.

They never stood a chance.

He threw his first weapon too fast for the stunned beast to react, catching it in the chest and effectively ending that threat. But that gave the other one a chance to react, and it crossed it arms in front of its shadowy figure to block the other dagger.

Yami leaped straight into the air, snapping his foot out to kick the beast in the head, and it slumped to the ground, defeated.

"Too easy." He muttered, watching as the creatures dissolved into nothingness. A sharp clang behind him told him that the first creature too, had vanished, freeing his sword. Yami quickly gathered it up and snapped his knives back into their hiding places. He grabbed a torch off of its sconce on the wall and waved it once, quickly making sure that the other shadows in the dark hall were not hiding anything living. After a quick glance around to ensure that no one else was coming, he sheathed his sword and ran. If anyone had heard that commotion, they would soon come to investigate, and he planned to be away from this place long before they did.

Yami jogged down the corridor, turned a sharp right, and felt a slight breeze of air across his face. It was not fresh air, but it was the cooler air of a much larger cavern. He had found the meeting room.

Hearing nothing ahead that would indicate the area was occupied, he turned the last corner and found the room with the many doors. He was a step away from freedom.

He glanced around the room quickly (too quickly!) and then rushed in to begin trying the doors.

An explosion of movement from the side and a flash of light had him scrambling to his left in a desperate attempt to get away from his attacker. Off balance and wide open, he knew he would be vulnerable, so he used his momentum to tuck into a roll to give himself some time to recover from the surprise. The torch went rolling away, scattering itself all over the floor and extinguishing the light. But Yami was not worried, the meager light from the torches outside of the room would be more than enough to his eyes.

He put his feet under him at the completion of his somersault and sprung to his feet, spinning and drawing his sword as he went. He expected to find his opponent surprised and unsure; he expected to turn his unbalance on his attacker with his quick movements. And so his surprise was complete when he turned to find a sword already arcing for his head; his ambusher already lined up for the killing blow!

Yami fell completely into his instincts, trusting his reflexes completely. Like a flash of lightning, his own sword shot up to block the descending blade. The ring of steel on steel was accompanied by a flash of sparks as their blades connected, and Yami knew at once that this was no ordinary guard. This might be harder than he first anticipated.

He quickly went on the offensive, hoping to overwhelm him. But each attack was met with the perfect parry, over and over again. He seemed to anticipate Yami's attacks before he could even begin them! He was shocked, and even a little disheartened. But his freedom could be only a few steps away, and he was not going to give up on the threshold of victory!

Yami spun into a series of quick jabs, looking only to overthrow the enemy's stance. With his sudden, straightforward approach, he sensed that he had surprised his enemy, and so he struck quickly. Yami's hand lashed out and grabbed his wrist where he was gripping his sword. With a quick tug he flung the sword out wide and brought his own to bear. With a surge of elation, he thought he had won. There was no way the man could recover from the move, no way he could bring his sword back around in time to stop Yami from running him through.

But then he froze, feeling the icy cold touch of a dagger resting at the base of his neck.

They both were completely still, locked in a pose of death. Yami held the sword arm out wide with his one hand, while his other hand held the sword directly above the man's heart. But his ambusher had reached around and pulled a knife out from some hidden location, and now held it poised at his throat.


	2. Perilous Reunion

Their eyes locked at the same time, and recognition finally clicked in for both of them.

"Yami?"

"Yugi?!"

Yugi dropped his dagger and Yami dropped his sword simultaneously. As soon as he realized what he had nearly done, Yami reached out and wrapped both of his arms around Yugi, crushing him and robbing him of breath. He could feel his heartbeat going strong with the rush of adrenaline.

"By the Gods Yugi, I could have killed you!" Yami gasped, pulling back to look at his partner. "How are you here? I thought we agreed to meet outside this nightmarish place."

"I'm sorry!" Yugi breathed, his eyes wide and staring as though he could not believe Yami was in front of him. "I didn't know it was you! All I heard was the battle outside and I thought the sentries were coming; and I just panicked when I saw you, I'm sorry! You're not hurt are you?"

"No, I'm fine. But how did you make it here?"

"Well, after we were separated, I thought I should just keep going and see if we met up eventually. But then the alarm went off, and there were goons everywhere. I'm still not sure what tipped them off, it's not like we left any clues behind."

"I thought they might have discovered you." Yami said softly. "I was praying that you would already be outside when I got out, or else I would have stayed behind and looked for you."

"I thought the same." Yugi agreed. "Except I thought that they were after you. I found my way clear."

"Odd... I wonder if there is another threat that they are trying to stop?" Yami pondered, looking back out into the dark hall. "They might not even know we are here."

"I doubt it." Yugi's face twisted with doubt. "Even if we haven't been spotted, I'm sure someone would have noticed a decrease in their numbers of shadow demons. I'm not as stealthy as you are." he admitted.

"Well, you nearly had me just a moment ago! If I had hesitated for just a fraction of a second..." he shook his head and smiled. "I would've been finished. But anyway, it matters little now. All that's important is that we get out of here as fast as we can. I think the mission is pretty much shot."

"Not quite." Yugi smiled, and reached into a pouch that hung around his waist. A second later, the room was lit with a soft golden light as Yugi pulled out a small orb. Yami laughed exultantly and ruffled Yugi's hair.

"You got it! That's my aibou! Good job, now let's get out of here."

"How? I've tried all of the doors, none of them open."

"There is a certain order it has to be done in. That's the way these things work, isn't it?" He smiled and offered a wink to his brother. "Here, you start at that end of the room," he pointed to the doorway, "and I'll start at this one. Search for anything out of the ordinary."

"Right." Yugi agreed, bending to scoop up his dagger. Yami similarly took up his sword and sheathed it, and then walked over to the wall and began running his fingertips over the stone. After they were searching in the silence for a moment, a strange tingling sensation began to creep over him. Curious, he closed his eyes and ran his hands blindly across the stone, feeling small ridges that were smooth and curved. Definitely man-made.

"Hey Yugi, bring that torch over here for a moment, would you?" Yami called, keeping his hands on the wall so he wouldn't lose his spot.

"What have you found?" Yugi asked, holding the torch high. Yami read aloud.

"_To be released from the Chamber of Seven,_

_ You need the keys of Three._

_ But if those you lack,_

_ You need not turn back,_

_ Simply state your desire to be free._

_ If your faith holds true,_

_ And your heart ne'er slacks,_

_ Then the way shall be opened to you._"

"The 'keys of Three'? Yugi echoed, perplexed. "I never found any keys."

"Nor did I." Yami murmured, reading the riddle again. "But it looks like we have another way out, if we can figure out what it means."

"It said to 'express your desire to be free'. Does that mean we just have to say we want out?"

"It can't be that easy." Yami said doubtfully.

"Well, what choice do we have? Unless we want to go back and search for those keys, but I really don't think we have the time." He backed up a few steps and clapped his hands, raising his voice loudly.

"Show me the way to be free of this place!" He shouted.

For a long moment, nothing happened. But Yugi stayed firm, not swaying from his stance for a moment. His hands remained in front of his chest, his eyes closed.

Yami was just about to suggest they try something else when the door that was third to his right lit up with a soft blue glow. Yugi threw a triumphant and only slightly smug smile in Yami's direction as he joined him at the door. With a shudder and a heavy snap, like the sound of a big bolt breaking, the door swung outward, opening its mouth. Yami and Yugi found themselves staring into its dark throat a little uneasily.

"I am so sick of dark corridors." Yugi mumbled, and Yami smiled.

"This one doesn't go very far though, look." Yami pointed. "You can see the gleam of a door handle at the end of it."

They glanced at each other a little apprehensively, but then they inched forward, seeing no other option. All sound was swallowed up as soon as they entered the narrow corridor, and neither of them dared to breathe, fearing to shatter the stifling silence. Yugi crept towards the door and put his ear against it for a moment. Then he tiptoed over to Yami who was back a ways with the revealing light. He motioned for Yami to bend over as he put his lips to his ear, trying to be quiet.

"Can you hear that?" He breathed. Yami pulled back and cocked his head, listening intently. After a second he shook his head. Yugi beckoned him back.

"Exactly."

Yami did not miss the implications. He turned Yugi's head gently and bent to whisper to him instead, his breath tickling Yugi's ear.

"Ambush?" He whispered. It was only one word, one question, but the weight of it settled heavily on both of their shoulders. It could easily prove true that the reason they had not encountered any more men then they had was because they had all gathered here, knowing this to be the most likely spot that they would head to.

Yugi shrugged, trying to be nonchalant about it. As though he was confident they could get by no matter what their enemies tried. Yami had to smile, grateful for his partner's confidence. He clapped his hand on Yugi's shoulder and Yugi put his hand on Yami's wrist, both agreeing silently that they would forge ahead. Yami motioned to himself and then to the door, indicating that he would go first. Yugi tightened his grip on his sword hilt and nodded, his heart already beginning to beat faster with anticipation. Yami handed him the torch, motioning for him to hold it high.

Yami gently touched the handle, noticing that it would open easily and silently. With a quick breath to steady himself, he turned the handle of the door slowly and creaked it open just a hair. That way it would swing open with hardly a touch.

He rocked back on his back foot and raised his front foot to waist level, perfectly balanced. He paused for a split second, finding his inner warrior, and then he snapped his foot out and knocked the door into the far wall with a loud bang.

Yami leapt into the room with his sword drawn and at the ready, but the torchlight revealed only a long and much narrower pathway that stretched the length of about ten paces and then ended abruptly with a stone wall. Yugi slipped into the room when Yami's shoulders slumped, and he groaned heavily when he saw what lay ahead of them.

"Oh, don't tell me..." He mumbled, quickly jogging to the stone wall.

"Yugi what are you..." Yami began, but he choked on the words when Yugi turned to his left, ran straight at the wall, and simply disappeared. Before Yami had the chance to properly panic though, he was back, his face twisted in disgust.

"It's a maze." He said, huffing a sigh and flopping down on the floor. "I really don't think I have the mental power left to struggle with this thing."

Yami walked over and peered at the spot Yugi had vanished. Sure enough, what he had taken to be a solid wall actually turned either direction at the end. No doubt the maze spanned the entire length of the chamber and longer!

Yami blew out a breath through his pursed lips and slumped against the wall. "Well, I would much rather go back now and see if we can't find those keys." He said softly, watching the stress increase on Yugi's face as he thought about trying to tackle this monstrosity. "I need more practice killing shadows anyway." He smirked.

Yugi sighed in agreement, and heaved himself up off of the floor. "I agree. We might as well, and then we won't have to-" He stopped abruptly, paling.

"What?" Yami asked him, alarmed. "Yugi?"

"Did you hear that?" Yugi breathed, staring at the door they had come from. The torch's flame suddenly seemed to grow duller, it's heat retreating into it's core while darkening the flame. Yami listened in terror as a bone-chilling howl reverberated through the room, an echo that's source was not too far away.

"Demon dogs." Yami gasped, his eyes widening in horror. "And they've caught our scent. We've got to go, now!" He grabbed Yugi by the wrist and tugged him forward, throwing them both into the maze, and in effect throwing their fates into the arms of mercy and luck.


	3. Poisoned

The maze was deep, dark, and cold. It was chilling, in more ways then one. Perhaps it was the way that the cold seemed to seep unnaturally under their skin, or the way that the silence all but smothered them as they ran deeper into the heart of the labyrinth. At first, it seemed that Yami was steadily leading them farther and farther away from the howls of the dogs. Soon the only sounds they could hear apart from their labored breathing and fearfully beating hearts, was the steady beat of their footsteps. Yami sped down the twisting pathways with wild abandon, trusting his instincts to lead him in the right direction. Yugi ran behind him, his wrist still in Yami's hand, his face fearful and scared. The cries were fading, dying in the distance as they ran. But still, Yugi would not relax.

Yami finally slowed, trying to breathe in the stale air. He actually had to lean over and put his hands on his knees, coughing softly.

"Yami, are you alright?" Yugi patted him gently on the back, trying to help dislodge whatever was stuck. Yami half-turned and caught his fingers in a gentle squeeze, smiling through the discomfort and standing tall.

"I'll be fine as soon as we leave this foul place behind us. I long for the open air."

"Me too." Yugi agreed. "But we have to get out of here first." This time he took the lead, going at a slower pace now that the calls had died down. They walked in silence for a bit; every now and again Yugi glanced worriedly out of the corner of his eye at his companion. Yami's breathing was louder than normal, and his face was paler than usual. Yugi unconsciously sped up. But it was obvious to both of them that they were becoming hopelessly lost in this dark place.

"I think we've lost them." Yami whispered, his voice coming in out as more of a gasp than anything else. But then, right at that moment, the demoniac keen of the evil dogs pierced through the air and into their hearts, freezing them in absolute terror. They were close enough by now that the effect of the dark cries was actually physically draining, for the demon's greatest advantage was that their otherworldly howls had the power to cut through mental defenses and scramble their prey's thoughts. Yami and Yugi had to clap their hands over their ears to keep their wits about them.

"Run!" Yugi yelled, pushing on Yami's back to get him to move. They shot through the darkness quickly, but they constantly had to pause and re-choose a path to take when snarls or barks resounded along their chosen route. Every time they were presented with a crossroad, their choices grew more and more limited. They were being herded.

And finally that reality hit them like a slap in the face only a second later.

Yugi turned the final corner, and skidded to a halt, his heart faltering.

Dead end.

Yami flung his arm out wide and swept Yugi behind him, backing up a few steps so that their backs were to the wall.

"Stay behind me." He commanded, no compromise in his tone.

"You can't face them all by yourself!" Yugi protested.

"I can in these halls." Yami assured him, looking back over his shoulder at Yugi. "I may not be able to swing my sword very far, but the small space just means those monsters will have to come in one at a time. I can hold."

"But..." Yugi began, worried. But then he spotted the glowing red eyes at the end of the passageway. The demons shied away from the torch's revealing light at first, but Yami knew that they would not hesitate much longer. Saliva dripped from their slavering mouths; they snarled in hunger and anticipation of the feast. They could already smell the victory, knowing that their prey was trapped.

"Yami..." Yugi's voice quivered, but he was trembling in fear for his brother and not for himself. He knew that Yami would never let those devilish hounds anywhere near him, and he felt terrible having Yami on the front line.

"Don't be afraid Yugi." Yami murmured, keeping his eyes on the group, waiting for one of them to move. "I will protect you."

And then, as though some hidden signal had passed through the waiting monsters, they lunged. One after the other bounded up to him, fangs bared and snarling, claws reaching for him. And one after another, they fell, mortally wounded.

For the first few minutes, Yugi found he lost his breath. Yami was sheer fighting brilliance, and despite the close quarters his skill with the blade was undiminished. But the demons just kept coming and coming, and it was obvious that Yami was tiring quickly. Sweat poured down his face, and his eyes shone unnaturally bright. The most dangerous enemy to them now though, was time. The longer they stayed here, the more hopeless the situation seemed. It seemed almost inevitable that they would meet their doom in this forsaken place, why put off what was meant to happen?

_He's in trouble. _Yugi moaned internally, wanting to help, needing to do something! He backed himself as far as he could into the wall, trying to make himself as small as was possible to give Yami some room. Something pressed into the small of his back as he retreated into the wall, something small and thin. He turned slightly to look at it, feeling his heart leap into his throat when he realized what it was.

"Yami, there is a switch!" He cried, toggling the little device. A small stone section of the wall hissed and slid away when he flicked the switch, revealing a small circular indent, and nothing more. Yugi looked at it in dismay, he had been hoping for a door or some sort of hidden path that would take them away from the beasts.

Yami did not look back, but he called out. "What's happening?"

"It's just a hole. Don't give up, I'll figure it out! Just keep them back for a moment longer!" Yugi called back, already fumbling in his pouches for the object. He drew out the orb he had found, and it once more lit up the halls with a soft light. The demons hissed sharply, cringing away from the golden glow.

As fast as he could, Yugi pushed the orb into the hole and twisted it. A bright spider's web of light spread it's way up the wall and into the darkness as he did so, and the stone shook greatly, suddenly throwing itself open and revealing a way out.

Yugi spun around and threw the torch into the throng of demons, making them yelp in fear. Then he grabbed the back of Yami's trailing cloak and tugged him through the doorway, pausing just long enough to grab the orb out of the hole before he darted in after him. The wall slid back into place with a deep thud, sealing them safely away.

Yami stumbled into the room and spun in time to see Yugi slip in after him. When the door closed he sighed in relief, knowing that they were safe for now, at least. He grimaced in sudden pain and clutched at his arm, only just now noticing that he was injured. Hot blood leaked through his fingers as he gripped the wound, making him feel lightheaded. The stress of the battle and the stifling blackness of the new cavern suddenly made him vividly aware of just how many tons of stone were hanging precariously just over his head. Suddenly his breath was very hard to come by; his vision swam and his knees buckled.

"Yami!" Yugi cried out, but his voice sounded very far away. Yugi sprung forward and caught his partner, groaning heavily with the dead weight. He lowered Yami gently to the floor, turning his face up as he did so. Yami's eyes were glazed and unfocused, and his breathing was too fast, too shallow.

Yami was vaguely aware of Yugi's arms around his shoulders, but the lightheaded feeling did not fade and he found it hard to focus. When Yugi pulled out the orb this time, the soft and warm glow seemed harsh and stinging to his eyes, and he cringed away from it, groaning.

The sound that escaped him was far from normal. A long moan, dark and cold, fled past his lips unbroken for the space of many moments before he realized that it belonged to him. His lips snapped shut and his eyes widened in shock.

Yugi sucked in a breath when he saw Yami's face. The light revealed that his skin was pale and shadowed, the veins showing through his suddenly fragile looking face. He cupped his cheek with one hand, his purple eyes reflecting desperate worry.

"You're hurt." Yugi stated, using the obvious observation to try and bring Yami's thoughts back to the present. "Where does it hurt?"

Yami slowly reached for Yugi's hand, and guided it to the cut. His sleeve was already soaked through. Yugi carefully peeled back the cloth, looking to see how bad the damage was, thinking that one of the demons must have slipped past Yami's defenses.

Yugi gasped and pulled back, his hand flying to his pouches again. The slash was a nasty shade of deepest red, and it oozed dark, tainted-looking blood lazily. But he had a bigger problem to worry about first. Yami's heart was beating too fast, and blood continued to pour freely from the bite wound. He fumbled in his pouch, looking for his medicinal components. It was a good thing he'd stocked up before they came here.

"Stupid demons and their infectious spit." Yugi cursed under his breath, tearing a strip off of his cloak and wetting it with a light blue liquid he had stored in a small vial.

"This is going to hurt, but it'll be over soon okay?" He couldn't even tell if Yami was listening, his head lolled to the side and he groaned again. Yugi swiftly cleaned the outside edges of the tear, and poured a generous amount of the healing salve into the gaping slash. Yami's face paled even further and he closed his eyes tight against the pain.

With swift, precise movements, Yugi tightly bound the cloth to his arm, soaking it with the rest of the liquid to keep the blood in his body. Yami bit his lip in stoic determination not to cry out. His eyes cleared a little.

"Here, drink some of this." Yugi said softly, producing yet another vial, this one a bright, cherry red. Yami raised a shaking hand, but Yugi stopped him with a half scared and half amused expression.

"On second thought, let me. You'll just spill it everywhere, and I don't have many more of these."

Yugi carefully pressed the potion to Yami's lips, making sure he went slow so that he didn't choke. After a second, Yami's colour returned, and he was able to sit up. His breathing slowed, and he wiped the sweat from his brow with the back of his hand.

"What was that all about?" He asked, his voice rough. He cleared it in embarrassment, focusing on just keeping the air moving steadily through his lungs.

"Demon bites are poisonous, obviously." Yugi said sarcastically, softly teasing his partner to keep Yami calm. Now that he knew he would be alright, Yugi too, let the pent up adrenaline fade, and a small smile teased his lips. But his tone turned a bit more solemn as Yami put a hand to his arm, grimacing.

"The potion won't keep the poisons at bay for very long, so we have to get out of here quickly. Once we get back to town, we can go see a healer and get you properly cleansed."

Yami moved his arm a bit, trying to make sure he could still move it well enough to defend himself. He glanced around the room, what he could see of it anyway. The orb could not pierce into the gloom very far.

"So... where are we?" He asked, struggling to stand up. Yugi jumped to his feet and hauled Yami up gently, he had to lean on him for a moment before he found his own strength and could stand on his own.

"No idea. I can't be sure that this isn't just another, bigger hole in the wall. We could be stuck in here until those dogs get tired of waiting and go away." Yugi tried to smile, but it came out as more of a grimace. "I can't think of a better way to spend the rest of my life."

Suddenly, he was interrupted by a low grating sort of laugh that echoed through the air.

"Don't worry, O' brave or foolish warriors." Said a cruel and mocking voice that seemed to resonate from the very stones themselves. "You won't have to worry about your lives anymore. I shall end them here and now, you will never see the light again!"

And with a thunderous roar and a great shimmering ripple, the darkness completely vanished. Suddenly they were sitting in a great vast cavern that was lit with a hot orangey-red light. The cool air of the darkness they had been sitting in fizzled and disappeared, letting the stifling heat settle in. Each breath became painful to draw. Hot magma slurped and bubbled barely inches away from them. And there, rising up out of the river of lava, fangs bared and gleaming, was a monstrous pitch black snake.

They had found the guardian of the orb.


	4. The Guardian

It craned its neck to the roof of the cavern and screeched, shaking rivers of dirt and small stones loose from the darkness above. The piercing cry was worse than that of the demon dogs, it literally felt like someone had reached into his head and scrambled his brains with a hot knife. Yugi stood as though frozen, his face twisted in agony. Strangely though, Yami found that the wail did not effect him quite as harshly. It was as though he had cotton in his ears or something; the yell still hurt, but he was able to focus despite that. Figuring the potion was combating the deadly screech, he dismissed the matter from his thoughts and focused on drawing his weapons.

The snake's cry was cut short as Yami's daggers whistled through the air in a quick one-two fashion. The first bounced harmlessly off of the beast's scaly hide, but when it swung its head down to fix Yami with a deadly glare, the second dagger found its eye and bit deep.

Its next cry held the dark undertone of agony. It thrashed in pain, making the ledge they were standing on tremble violently as lava slapped its sides. They backed farther to the wall, trying to stay as far from the edge as was possible.

"What do we do?" Yugi cried, having to yell to be heard over the beast.

"I don't know!" Yami shouted back, casting his eyes about desperately for some clue to the snake's weakness. "Do you see anything I don't?"

"What about that?" Yugi pointed, seeing a small point of silver nestled between the snake's eyes. Because it was still thrashing so terribly, Yami had at first thought that the silver belonged to the dagger he had thrown, but a closer look revealed that it was actually a part of the snake itself, some sort of gem embedded in its forehead.

Of course, as soon as he saw it clearly, he also figured out that the snake had stopped moving so much and was now staring them down with its one good eye. It began to suck in a deep breath, a terrible red light swelling in it's jaws.

"Oh no." Yami moaned, observing with dismay the small amount of space they had to maneuver on this ledge. They could not have appeared in a worse spot. He prayed silently for a solution to their predicament, and nearly cried aloud in amazement when his prayer was answered a split second later. There was a shallow alcove carved into the wall just a few feet to the side of them, dug into a section of stone that jutted out from the wall and in front of the monster's line of fire. Perfect.

He spun Yugi around and pushed him forward. The air in the cavern seemed to grow cooler the longer the snake inhaled. The light was painful to look at now, glowing with a fiery radiance that would no doubt melt the flesh from their bones!

Just before the snake released the pent up energy, Yami practically threw Yugi into the cavity in the stone and drew his cloak across the entrance protectively.

The ensuing blast momentarily stole the air from the cavern, and left behind a searing heat that burned at their lungs anyway. The light was intense, glowing hot and angry, but it was still nothing compared to the fire itself. The scorching tongues of flame engulfed the whole of the puny ledge and shot up the walls and across the floor, swallowing up every inch of stone that it could. The blaze slammed into Yami's back with the force of a wrecking ball, he jerked forward in shock and pain. But he did not dare lower his arms lest the fire get in and roast them both where they stood. Yugi watched as Yami bravely stood against the onslaught though sweat cut streaks through the dirt on his face and his eyes widened in pain from the pressure. He shook violently, but the snake showed no signs of stopping for many moments. Yugi tried to help by holding up the obviously enchanted cloak against the entrance.

Yami's arms were burning from more than just the heat, and they slipped down a few inches. A single tongue of white fire licked its way into the alcove and burned Yugi's hand before he could retract it, and he clutched it to his chest with a cry of surprise.

"Yugi!" Yami gasped and re-doubled his efforts, straining against the fire with every ounce of strength he had to offer.

The beast finally relented, the chamber grew darker once more. Yami collapsed to his knees and sucked in a huge breath, trembling. Yugi fell beside him, holding his uninjured hand to Yami.

"You alright?" He whispered. Without answering, Yami reached for the hand that had been burned and softly stroked the angry red welt with slender fingers.

"Sorry." He murmured. "Are _you_ alright?" Yugi snorted.

"It's just a little burn. I've had worse. Besides, if you hadn't been so brave just now, a lot more than just my hand would have been burned. So thank you. You saved my life."

Yami brought his lips to the burn in a silent apology, and his cool skin felt good against Yugi's heated flesh. "I guess we're even then?" Yami teased, glancing at his own bandaged wound. Yugi smiled and laughed, and laughed harder still when Yami looked over his shoulder to see that his cloak now sported a great black slash across it, and was smoldering slightly.

"Great." He scoffed. "This 'fire-proof' cloak cost me sixty gold pieces and it caves under the first blow. I'll have a few strong words for that smooth talking merchant." He growled, patting his sword hilt for emphasis.

The temporary reprieve was stolen when the stone around them suddenly shook under the weight of a huge blow, the snake had rammed its head above the alcove, trying to flush out the intruders that it somehow knew were still alive.

"COME OUT YOU TRESPASSING RATS!" The beast roared thunderously, beating on the walls.

"Okay," Yugi said, flinching with every booming impact. "How are we... going to... get to the... jewel?"

"I can distract it with this," Yami answered, waving the cloth back and forth. "It should hold against a few more attacks, I would hope. Meanwhile, you need to sneak across the ledge and look for a way around the guardian. If you can find some way to get higher up, then you can get onto its back and hopefully work your way to the crystal. That seems the most logical course to me."

Yugi nodded, eagerly accepting the challenge, and silently grateful that Yami had entrusted him with such an important and dangerous task. His respect for his brother increased then, and he smiled a little to ease both of their doubts.

"I can do it, no problem." Yugi agreed, and stood up.

"Be careful." They whispered in unison, giving each other one last hug for good luck. Yami grinned devilishly and walked confidently out into the open, right into the startled beast's plain sight. Yami gave an overly exaggerated and mocking bow.

"Was your mother part earthworm or are you just naturally puny for your race?" He yelled. Yugi could almost picture the lava snake's proud features twisted in horrible rage as Yami yelled the insult at it. Predictably, no sooner had he finished then it breathed again, this time a shorter blast because it had not taken as much time to gather energy. Yami ducked under the cover of his cloak and waited out the storm, motioning to Yugi to hurry and move as soon as the snake stopped.

When the fires again halted Yugi took off, sprinting past Yami and heading past the creature to find a stairway or fallen rocks, something he could use for leverage. Yami continued to taunt the prideful creature.

"Is that all you've got, you pathetic excuse for a snake? I've known hatchlings with more fire in their bellies than you've got in your whole body! Why I'd bet..."

Suddenly, he stopped, cut off mid-taunt. Yugi risked one backwards glance to see what was wrong, for he had not heard the snake inhale to prepare to attack.

Yami was standing there, fully exposed and vulnerable, craning his neck up and staring into the snake's one good eye with a glazed and unfocused look in his own. What they both had forgotten and realized too late, was that the lava snake's greatest weapon was not its breath. Born part dragon and part basilisk, a lava snake's biggest advantage over its prey was the ability to paralyze without turning to stone. Yami was held captive in the depths of its burning eye.

The snake chuckled dangerously, slowly moving its great head closer. Yami followed its every move with a vacantly attentive expression.

"Where are your insults now, little thief?" It purred, parting its massive jaws to reveal its slick, poison coated teeth. "You have caused me much trouble by coming here, but then again..." Its forked tongue flicked past its scaly lips to lick Yami from jawline to cheek bone. Yami did not so much as flinch.

"I have not tasted of fresh human meat in a long, long time."

The next moment came in slow motion. Yugi drew his sword and sprung toward the creature, howling one, long, continuous protest. The snake closed its eye just long enough to let Yami out of the spell, and then it snapped its head forward and closed its mighty jaws around Yami's waist.

"NOOOO!" Yugi roared, anger the likes of which he'd never felt before surging in his veins. He raised his sword high, words that he did not recognize floating past his lips. His blade burst into golden flame; delicate runes etching themselves into the metal and glowing intensely. He plunged the blade deep into the monster's neck, spilling its dark life blood everywhere. The snake howled in blinding agony, and Yami dropped heavily from its jaws as it reared back. He landed with a heavy thump and lay still and unmoving.

Ignoring the fiend's deafening screams, ignoring the hot blood coating his forearms, and ignoring the tears that were cascading down his face, Yugi dropped to his knees and cast the sword away. He reached to turn Yami toward him, but hesitated, trying so hard to also ignore how very pale and still his dearest friend was. He swallowed hard and gently turned Yami round, unable to hold back his sobs when he did.

There was no way any potion was going to fix so horrendous a wound. There was nothing he could do.

Tears slipped from his face and splashed onto Yami's cheek, and Yugi put his arms around his brother and lifted him into a tight and heartbroken embrace. He shut his eyes tight against the world and cried, his sharp, wrenching sobs shaking them both as he buried his face in Yami's shoulder.

The gentle touch of shaking fingers on his face and a soft breath in his hair brought him back to the world in an instant. Yugi's eyes snapped open, amazed that Yami was still alive. Yami's eyes shone again with that same unnatural light as when he'd been poisoned by the demons, but they were focused despite that.

"Looks like... you'll have to- to go on without me... aibou." Yami panted, trying to force the words out. "Can you believe this?" he coughed hoarsely, breathlessly. "What a stupid mistake..."

Yugi shook his head, pressing Yami's hand to his face as more tears pooled in his eyes. "It wasn't your fault." he whispered, his voice thick. Yami smiled weakly.

"I guess... I'll know for next time... right?" he joked.

"Don't say that, you're going to be fine." Yugi said, trying to keep the ring of a lie out of his voice. But Yami did not buy into it.

"Don't give up Yugi... you can do it. You're strong... you don't need me around..." Yami looked straight into Yugi's eyes even as their inner light began to fade. "You can..." he reiterated, one last time. And then his eyes rolled upwards and the rest of his breath escaped his body in a soft sigh as he sank into the deepest darkness he had ever known.

"No..." Yugi mumbled, his denial having more than one meaning. "No..."

The snake's blood continued to splatter on the stones like rain, but the beast was still unfinished though it was fading fast. It lined up for the killing blow, its massive jaws wide. Yugi looked to his sword, lying on the stone a few feet away, already stained with blood. But he felt like he could not move to pick it up.

"No Yami... I can't. I'm not as strong as you... without you. I can't do it... I'm sorry." he breathed, hunching over his protector in defeat as the snake's huge jaws snapped closed over them.


	5. The End?

For a long, long time, there was only the blackness. Then, gradually, the black was not so deep and dark, for there was a small, faded smudge slowly crystalizing into a definite form before his eyes. A harsh red glow glared at him from the depths, slowly converging into a message, the last message for the doomed.

'Game Over.'

Yugi sighed and put his hands on his head, pulling the virtual reality helmet off. He shook his head to set his sweat-dampened hair straight, trying to readjust his senses to the room. Video game beeps and other sound effects filled his ears, and the familiar smell of metal coins and machines mixed with the concession stand wafted to his nose. The game screen was a faded black, showing he and Yami's virtual characters strewn in pieces across the lair of the dungeon's boss.

And they had come so close, too...

He glanced over to his right to see Yami struggling to get the helmet off of his head, and not having much luck. Yugi laughed and tried to get him to hold still long enough to pry it off.

Yami stumbled backwards when the helmet finally let go with a soft pop, careening into the crowd that they had attracted with their show. One young woman put her hands out to catch him, holding him by the forearms to steady him.

"Sorry." Yami apologized with an embarrassed blush. The woman just smiled hugely with tears on her cheeks.

"Don't even worry about it." She said, setting him upright. "_That_ performance was well worth it. I've never seen that game attract such a big crowd before you two turned up! That was such a touching ending, even if you lost, right guys?"

She looked to her companions expectantly. The one with the gold colored hair was dabbing at her eyes with a tissue and the other with the vibrant eyes was giggling and crying at the same time.

"That was so sweet!" The brown/green/blue-eyed woman sighed, holding her arms and swaying back and forth. "Kawaii!"

Yami blinked, a little surprised to hear his native tongue spoken here. "Arigato." He bowed in reply, causing her to lapse into another fit of giggles. The golden haired girl patted her shoulders to try and calm her down, while the brunette that had caught Yami in the first place gently stepped in.

"Don't mind her, she's nuts." She said, drawing a loop in the air with her finger. "So, are you two brothers or what?" She asked as Yugi came over, running a hand through his hair.

"Something like that." Yami smiled, clapping Yugi on the shoulder.

"Well, relatives or not, you two make one heck of a team! You should give the boss another go, I would bet you would make it this time!" She turned to the rest of the crowd, looking for support.

"What do you guys think, should they give it another go?"

She was answered by cheers and scattered applause. Apparently their little show was more popular then they'd thought. Yami looked at Yugi, who seemed a little uncertain. Yami picked up on his mood instantly, and ushered him aside.

"Sure, we'd be happy to. Just uh... give us a minute to get something to drink, alright?" He called back to satisfy the crowd. Yami steered Yugi to a relatively quieter section of the concession and plopped him down on the seat.

"Be right back." Yami said, holding up a finger to indicate that Yugi was to remain there. Then he went to go fetch some water bottles.

"Two please." he asked the man at the counter, handing him a few paper bills he'd had in the pocket of his jeans. The man disappeared into the fridge for a moment and came back with two bottles of water that made Yami more thirsty just looking at them.

"I saw the fight from here." The man smiled, clearly impressed. "You guys are a good team, but does your partner not want to go again?"

Yami shrugged. "I'm not sure, but I intend to find out." He took his change and went back to their table, plunking the bottles down.

He flopped himself down in the chair, cracked the lid on his bottle and took a long and hearty swallow in one fluid motion. Yugi watched him sullenly, spinning his bottle on it's edge but not opening it. Yami put his own down slowly, perplexed at this sudden shift in him. He fixed Yugi under the gaze of his bright purple eyes, eyes that could peer into a man's soul from across a duel stadium, and none more effectively than his partner's.

Yugi could not hold against the scrutiny. "I'm sorry." He whispered. Yami blinked.

"Sorry? What for?" he asked, confused.

"It's my fault we lost." Yugi mumbled, shamefaced.

Yami was silent for a split second before he threw back his head and laughed incredulously. Yugi looked at him curiously, a bit annoyed.

"Don't laugh at me, I feel bad enough as it is!"

Yami looked at him again, reducing his laughter to a small amused smile for the sake of Yugi's pride. He reached across the table and cupped Yugi's face in his hands, not caring who was watching.

"Amazing." He murmured, more to himself it seemed, than anyone else. "Even when he is blameless he still shoulders the blame." Then he addressed Yugi directly, the smile never leaving his face.

"Your fault? How so? I was the one who forgot about the stupid snake's paralyzation. I was caught in that trap, not you."

"I know..." Yugi began, unable to hold his gaze within Yami's. "But all the same... I just, I just quit. I gave up. I knew I could never face that monster alone Yami, I'm too weak on my own. The only way I thought I could do it was if you were there with me." he sighed. "I'm not strong enough on my own."

He felt those soul-searching orbs probing his heart in earnest, wondering where these negative feelings had come from. Of all the people Yugi had ever met, no one was as effective at finding hidden secrets than Yami, and he doubted he could hold out much longer against the scrutiny.

"Who was the one that found the secret to escaping from the demons?" Yami asked, still not letting Yugi out of his gaze.

"Well, me, but..." Yami put a finger on his lips to stop him.

"And who was the one that saved me from turning into a demon myself when I was wounded?"

"Me." Yugi answered. "But..."

"And who, pray tell, stabbed a giant snake in the neck to save me from a fate worse than death?"

"Me!" Yugi huffed, exasperated.

"Well then?" Yami retorted, dropping his hands. "I have no idea what you mean when you speak of weakness. Maybe in this country weakness is standing courageously against the evils, but in Egypt you would have been hailed as a hero."

"I... well..." Yugi stammered, looking like he wanted to say something really badly. And then, he let it all spew forth in a sudden rush.

"Alright fine! I'll admit it, I _was _strong! I was braver than I've ever been in a really long time, I felt like I stood as your equal rather than someone who needed to be protected. But as soon as you 'died', that started to wonder if it was only because you were there that I felt the way I did. I thought that maybe I was only strong because you were beside me. I couldn't be strong by myself."

Yugi finally looked Yami in the eyes, breathing heavily as the weight of what he had said slid off of his shoulders.

"Feel better?" Yami asked him. Yugi nodded.

"Alright then, my turn." Yami said, and he suddenly stood halfway up out of his chair and leaned across the table again to whisper into Yugi's ear.

"Taking a phrase out of Joey's book, that was a load of bologna." Yami told him, no hint of a doubt clouding his voice. He sat back down and put his hands on top of Yugi's.

"Don't ever think that your strength is dependent on someone else Yugi, especially on me. It's actually the other way around." Yugi started in surprise.

"No, it's true." He said. "The whole reason we made it as far as we did was because of your kind heart, if you think about it. You were the one who didn't want to kill any of the humans in the game, you even extended mercy towards fictional characters! It takes a lot of strength not to take the easy way out, and you know that."

Yugi's eyes were beginning to fill with a soft hope and belief that he wasn't sure he believed in yet.

"Well, I..." Yugi began, trying to find something that he could use against the stream of compliments. But one tiny little voice in the corner of his heart told him to just accept the truth and stop putting himself down.

"I looked at your stats before I had my helmet off." Yami whispered. "Your adrenaline bar was up all the way, and that fueled your magic powers too. That's what made your sword burst into flame. And you still had a few potions left in your pouches from the trip into town, plus the orb itself could be used as a spell component if the need arose. You could have easily stood against the snake, with or without me. I hold faith in you, can't you too?"

Yugi smiled guiltily, blushing a bit at the praise. "I guess I could learn to do that."

"Good." Yami smiled widely, as Yugi took a long swallow of his water and brushed the sweat from his neck. Suddenly, Yugi jumped up and tugged on Yami's hands.

"All right then, come on. We've stalled long enough. I don't think the king will be too happy if we show up late for the mission, do you?"

Yami laughed and clasped hands with his partner, grateful that Yugi was able to let go of his self-made restrictions and believe fully in himself.

They returned to the game to more cheers from their little fan base; and as they put their helmets on and picked up their swords they locked arms as they descended into the virtual world.

This time they would face the boss with confidence and determination, and no matter what happened in there, they would emerge victorious.

Together.


End file.
